Indian Navy Commissions INS Samarthak, Its First Multi-Purpose Vessel Built by a Private Shipyard
The Indian Navy commissioned (formally took into service) INS Samarthak at the naval base in Karwar, Karnataka, on 16 October 2026. The Vice-President of India presided over the ceremony.
Samarthak is the Navy's first multi-purpose vessel (MPV). The Navy describes it as the first of four such vessels to be inducted.
It was designed and built by Larsen & Toubro (L&T), a private company, at its Kattupalli shipyard near Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The Ministry of Defence signed the contract for the first two vessels in March 2022, worth about ₹887 crore. The ship was launched in October 2024 and handed over to the Navy on 27 August 2026.
The ship has more than 75% indigenous content (share of parts and systems made in India). It is about 107 m long, 18.6 m wide and displaces about 3,750 tonnes, with a top speed of about 15 knots.
Its main jobs: testing new weapons and sensors at sea (including launching and recovering practice targets), maritime surveillance and patrol, operating unmanned systems like drones, towing ships in distress, firefighting, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR).
The Chief of the Naval Staff called the commissioning a significant step towards Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance), and asked for shorter timelines to move Indian technologies from prototype to production.
Indigenous Warship Building and "Aatmanirbharta" in Defence Production
Indigenous warship building means designing and building naval ships inside India, using Indian shipyards, Indian designers and, as far as possible, Indian-made steel, engines, weapons and electronics. Aatmanirbharta is the Hindi word for self-reliance. In defence, it means India should be able to make the weapons it needs instead of buying them from other countries. The Indian Navy is often called a "builder's navy", because almost all of its new ships are now built in India.
INS Samarthak was designed and built in-house by a private Indian shipyard, with more than 75% Indian content. Its commissioning shows the "builder's navy" idea in action, and it shows that private yards can now share the work of building naval ships with public shipyards.
Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020
The Defence Acquisition Procedure, or DAP, is the Ministry of Defence's rulebook for buying weapons, aircraft, ships and other big equipment for the armed forces. It sets out the steps from first approval to signing a contract, and it decides which kind of seller gets preference. DAP 2020 replaced the earlier Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2016. Its main aim is to make buying faster and to give Indian industry first chance.
Samarthak was bought from an Indian private shipyard under this rulebook, with an Indian design and more than 75% Indian content. Such purchases are what DAP 2020's preference for Indian sellers is meant to encourage.
- INS Samarthak commissioned: 16 October 2026, Karwar naval base, Karnataka
- Builder: Larsen & Toubro, Kattupalli shipyard (near Chennai); designed at L&T's Warship Design Centre
- Contract: 25 March 2022, two vessels, about ₹887 crore; Navy describes Samarthak as first of four MPVs
- Launched: 14 October 2024; delivered: 27 August 2026
- Size: about 107 m long, 18.6 m wide, about 3,750 tonnes displacement; top speed about 15 knots
- Indigenous content: more than 75%
- Roles: weapon and sensor trials, surveillance and patrol, unmanned systems, towing, firefighting, HADR
- Second vessel of the class: Utkarsh, launched January 2025, in sea trials